A little bit more than patriotism. A little bit lower than jingoism. ---
Nirendra Dev

Monday, September 26, 2016

A Polemical Love - Letter to Mr Nawaz Sharif and other citizens of Pakistan

I would have possibly performed a more useful task
if I have been more polemical or vitriolic in this missive (or the blog). I am
thinking of this letter writing exercise addressing to Pakistani citizens –
most of whom do not know me at all - at a time when the tension between India
and Pakistan is at its height. Probably it all started about 40 years back when
your country started ‘cross border’ strategy – we call it terrorism – to avenge
your defeat on Bangladesh front.

In the last two decades or so, India is estimated
to have lost about 25,000 soldiers and citizens. In the meantime, in the name
of democracy in India – we developed a sickness – a growing tendency to defame
our own government, own police and military men and in short – our own country.
This jiongoism of self-criticism became associated with modern liberalism. In
the meantime, in a wider scale – the so called appeasement of minorities in our
own country – especially Muslims - have assumed an even more dominant role than
most observers a generation ago would have thought about.

In the process, even showing softness towards your
country – that is Pakistan - became a vote bank issue – a tool to garner Muslim
votes in India.

Faced with such unashamed glorification of a style to defame own religion and culture, “Our Indianness” almost withdrew into itself. Mocking
at majority in India became a fashion. For some newspapers in Kolkata it became
a style statement. Hence your envoy’s voice --- blatantly against my own
country – has become a flier news story.

blogger Dev

However, over the years your political establishment
in tandem with the military worked to a plan. You seemed to be enjoying every time
a ‘kafir’ soldier was killed or beheaded!

And the moment a general mood was being prepared for
harsh steps against your country – we had candle light marchers, editorials and
Left-Congress-socialists variety of politicians.

Some like Marxist doyen Jyoti Basu rejoiced in calling our Hindu brethren “barbarous” and chose to look the
other way when perpetrators were the other lot and even from your country.

The “human
rights bogey” was raised at wrong moments and we had several other instruments to
mock at ourselves.

But while your political class and military dragged
your polity to a jingoism – wherein anti-India rhetoric became a tonic for
survival, as citizens you all lost the track of your democratic polity. So the
blame has to be accounted one day.

In the meantime, we had given ourselves a political
thought and a leadership that made a fine combination of Hindu chauvinism,
nationalism, anti-Islam and anti-Pakistan rhetoric. This was certainly our
creation – like the speeches of ‘Mia Musharraf’ variety in 2002 and to an
extent this also has to do with the passivity of Pakistanis.

You gave a free hand to your political-military
leadership to breed “snakes” in the backyards and thus the rest is history. Can
you really deny Pakistani complexity vis-à-vis the rise of Taliban cult and
other forms of terrorism? These have only – and that unfortunately - also left
your country bleeding number of times.

In 1997, your present Prime Minister Mr Sharif (I always
thought he remained a ‘gentleman’ as the Urdu word suggests) made a promise to
work for peace with India. There was a huge mandate in his favour and we could
also hope for a break. May be your PM wants to deliver. Some of us had
doubts. Your military power brokers had other intentions.

Our doubts were proved right when your military
intervened and first you gave the sub-continent the ‘Kargil conflict’ and later
the coup from Gen Pervez Musharaf.

Mr Sharif had to flee. He has again
came back to the political forefront even as in the meantime you lost Benazir
Bhutto.

Today your country’s economy is in
doldrum and even Afghan President Mohammad
Ashraf Ghani during a visit to Delhi said, your country Pakistan has
turned into a nation that "celebrates every single episode of its own
defeat" as victory and "every single intelligence failure is regarded
as a confirmation of conspiracy theory".

Now, our Prime Minister Narendra Modi
has made an attempt to establish a dialogue with the citizens of Pakistan and
urged you all to examine where did you go wrong in giving a freehand to your
political class. They worked out on the unholy nexus with the military establishment
and created the monster of terror around.

What’s the roadmap ahead then?

Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also reminded
you of your “Indian roots”. This may sound irritating to most of you as you
have lived all these years to hate ‘kafirs’. Hindu religion and the country
India – both have grown as a result of thousands years of evolution. We had
origins in Aryan foundation and also lived with the codified theories of Vedas
and Upanishads. But it is true the richness of our civilization would not have
been possible without the role of Islam.

The ‘Pakistan’ you created certainly had its roots
in Indian values and civilization. It is high time – you all look back – and re-examine
the history – last 70 years – you have dedicated in creating and exporting
terrorism to bleed us.

Certainly, Pakistan as a country presents a paradoxical case. The hatred you lived on has reduced the country – you so affectionately named ‘holy- homeland’ – today is almost a “failed state”. The byword of your co-existence with terrorism is sheeer obstinacy. It is like the case of an unsuccessful painter who had all the potentials to shine with his art but created a ground only to end up as a failed imposture.

Islam in India – a multi-lingual nation with
multi-faith – arrived as a ‘phoren’ influence and only represented a culture of
Monotheism.

It gathered immense respect. Sufism even became a
part of rural characteristic. But the success was limited. Despite converting
millions into Islam, the country has remained essentially Hindu – both in
numbers and spirit and also superstitions. The fact that Hindus remained Hindus
– notwithstanding Christianity and Islam – is only a proof that Monotheism also
divides people – tears them apart. Look at both the countries today. We know
it. You must also know it.

About Me

Author of 'Rainbows and Misty Sky: Windows to North East India';
'HEART ALONE' (A collection of short stories), 'Modi to Moditva: An Uncensored Truth' and other books, 'Ayodhya: Battle for Peace' (2011) ‘Godhra – A Journey To Mayhem’ (2004) and ‘The Talking Guns: North East India’ (2008).